Keeping your body in balance

Brain Health and Ginseng

I have long heard about the benefits of Ginseng for improving something, but I can’t remember what it was… Ha, ha, ha! Just a little memory joke there! Ginseng has been long admired for many health benefits, including boosting your memory. This article from Designs for Health has some fascinating information about research into a specific type of Ginseng (American Ginseng) and it’s potential for improving cognitive function. This is especially interesting in light of the fact that “the incidence of Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias is already high and projected to rise, owing to the aging of the Baby Boomers and other factors.”

Most interesting from the article is the information pertaining to studies regarding the effects of American Ginseng on human populations:

“Studies evaluating the effects of American ginseng in humans support its effects on boosting cognitive function in healthy individuals. In a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled crossover trial (N=32 healthy adults age 18-40), compared to placebo, improvements in an array of memory and cognition tests as well as mood were demonstrated with American ginseng doses between 100-400mg/day. Similar results were realized in a study evaluating 200mg of American ginseng against placebo in slightly older healthy subjects (N=52, age 40-60): compared to placebo, ginseng improved cognitive performance in working memory at 3 hours.”

So, is American Ginseng likely to cure Alzheimer’s Disease? NO. However, it will likely improve cognitive function in anyone who regularly takes it, including those with Alzheimer’s or other forms of dementia. How much of an improvement remains to be seen. If you’d like to learn more about the research and how these processes work, you can find the full article here: